And this is our Thanksgiving tragedy. You must understand the farm is heaven for kids and dogs. The buildings stand up on a hill well back from the road and are surrounded by overgrown fields. The farm hasn't been a producing farm since before my family bought it in 1967. About a half mile back over open fields and second growth woods is Hannigan Pond.

At home for the holiday were my oldest sister and her two kids and their dog. Also there were my youngest sister and her daughter and their dog. Living at the farm are my parents and their three cats and three dogs. So we had 9 people, three cats and five dogs.

On Thursday morning the dogs went out as usual. Emma, a small black and white lab and shepherd mix, and Annie, a lovely Irish Setter, played together in the yard. After a while, as kids prepared to go out for a walk they were missed. Search parties fanned out.

It was my nephew that found them. They had made their way down to the pond and broke through the ice about 30 feet out from the bank. He and my oldest sister manhandled a canoe 200 hundred yards through the woods to the spot closest and broke through ice to rescue them. Annie was already gone and Emma had just given up the struggle and was no longer swimming. They rushed her back to the farm house and began the revival. My sister changed into some dry clothes and she and I went back for Annie. We knew it was too late but we had to try. My other sister was distraught and my niece was inconsolable.

Annie was indeed gone. We got her out of the water but she was dead. By the time we reached shore my nephew was back with my daughter and they helped us haul her up through the woods to the trucks in the clearing.

It was a sad day and this is the point of my story. What do you tell a 6 year old kid who has just lost her dog?

Fortunately the ground was not yet frozen. We dug a nice deep grave for her in a corner of the garden. Little Addie and her grandfather made a headstone that said "Beloved Dog, Annie" on it. Addie also drew a heart with a picture of a dog. Then my daughter and I went down to the clearing with a blanket and brought Annie home. My daughter combed her hair and made her look as pretty as she could and then we led Addie over to say goodbye to Annie. She was very solemn and petted her. Then we covered Annie with the blanket and lowered her gently to her rest. My sister spoke of what a good dog Annie was and how much she would be missed. We told Addie that Annie was resting now and would become part of the farm. I told her that Annie would continue to live in her heart and in her mind as long as she remembered what a good dog Annie was and how much she had loved her. I pointed to the location of the grave and how pretty it would be in the springtime.

She has all the resiliency of a 6 year old. That evening she was alternatively full of fun and then sad and withdrawn. Next morning she crawled into my lap and solemnly announced that she wanted her dog.

What would you have done?